Sometime after midnight, on a moonless October night turned harsh by a fine, windswept rain, one of the men I liked least in the world was murdered in a field near Bedford, just south of the city....The detectives went looking for suspects--- people whose histories with Jefferson were adversarial and hostile. At the top of that list, they found me.

So begins A Welcome Grave, the third novel by award-winning mystery writer Michael Koryta, featuring private investigator Lincoln Perry. Once a rising star on the Cleveland police force, Perry ended his career when he left one of the city's prominent attorneys, Alex Jefferson, bleeding in the parking lot of his country club---retribution for his affair with Perry's fiancée. Now Jefferson is dead, the victim of a brutal murder, and his widow has called upon Perry for a favor he knows he shouldn't accept but can't turn down: to find Jefferson's estranged son, partial beneficiary of the dead man's fortune. The case is simple enough, a routine "locate," and he'll be paid plenty of money for the work. The encounter should be simple, too: a brief exchange of information and maybe an empty condolence before Perry gets back into his truck and returns home. Instead, he's loaded into a police car and taken to a rural jail while Jefferson's son is zipped into a body bag. Perry soon learns that Jefferson's millions are the target of a thirst for revenge that hasn't been satisfied by blood. As a pair of deadly assailants push deep into the investigator's life, they bring with them police from two states who are determined to see Perry in jail. Building on the skill that prompted the Toronto Sun to call him "one of America's best young mystery writers," Michael Koryta makes A Welcome Grave an intense exploration of the lengths to which a desperate man is forced to go in order to clear his name and solve a crime. This is a thrilling new book that justifies the critical acclaim and solidifies his role as an emerging talent among today's top writers.

Praise for Michael KorytaA WELCOME GRAVE

"For a while now, Michael Koryta has been called one of the rising young talents in crime fiction. I say enough of that. A Welcome Grave proves the promise. Koryta is one of the best of the best, plain and simple. With stories like this, his Lincoln Perry is going to be around for a long, long time."---Michael Connelly, author of The Overlook and the bestselling Harry Bosch series

"With the publication of A Welcome Grave, it's time to stop referring to Michael Koryta as a boy wonder and just focus on the sheer wonder of his storytelling. Koryta knows how to put his characters---and his readers---into an ever-tightening vise of twists, turns, and conspiracies, but it's his empathy that makes his work stand out. This is a nuanced, mature novel that proves both the depth of Koryta's talent and the vitality of the PI genre."--- Laura Lippman, Edgar Award winner and author of No Good Deeds

"In the last few years, new writing talent has entered all subgenres of crime fiction. One of the names at the top of the list is Michael Koryta. Heis a breath of fresh air, his writing is clear and concise, and his observations on the darkness of the human condition show how the PI novel is one of the finest forms in all of fiction writing. Mr. Koryta is on his way to being a master of the PI novel, sacred ground indeed."---Richard Katz, Mystery One Bookstore

SORROW'S ANTHEM

"Sorrow's Anthem is no sophomore slump."---The Washington Post

"Koryta displays the maturity of a writer with several novels under his belt, and his plot percolates with crisp dialogue that might impress Chandler himself."---Booklist (starred review)

TONIGHT I SAID GOODBYE

"Say hello to a new crime talent."---Chicago Tribune"[Koryta] has produced what few thought possible---an incredibly fresh PI novel when the subgenre had been long declared fatigued…Koryta emerges fully formed in his first effort."---The Baltimore Sun

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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

Today, the Triple Crown. Next year the ?July 25 2007

By
Mel Kuhbander
- Published on Amazon.com

Format: Hardcover
Verified Purchase

This is the third of the Koryta books that I've read and I have enjoyed every one of them. Other reviewers have referenced the plot line, the character development and how it is even stronger than in the first two novels, and so on. There is almost little to add but I'm going with this.

When the winner of the Kentucky Derby goes on to the Preakness and wins out over all the others but by a larger margin, and then goes to the Belmont and repeats it but by an even larger margin, the world knows it has a champion.

Koryta is young and he is a champion. Each of his works is just, well, better than the one before and what is amazing is that everyone of them reflects superb story telling and writing.

I, for one, am thrilled that Michael Koryta is so very young. He's going to be with us for a long, long time and that is great news for readers of this genre.

I look forward to next year's gift and I am especially anxious to follow the development in Lincoln Perry's personal life with Amy. I admit that I would like to see something that ties in her professional job with a Perry problem while, at the same time, allowing for the evolution of their relationship.

Tough assignment there? Not for Michael Koryta.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

Doom, Disaster and Deus ex MachinaFeb. 9 2011

By
Sheldon Leemon
- Published on Amazon.com

Format: Mass Market Paperback

I like mystery novels with deep characterization, likable (if flawed) detectives with an interesting circle of friends, and intriguing puzzles that are solved by turning up leads, working them hard, making deductions, and getting the occasional burst of inspiration. The first two of Michael Koryta's Lincoln Perry novels fit this bill pretty well.

I dislike mystery novels that use the cliched "Detective in Peril" plot line. First, such plots are too hard to believe. Real-life criminals almost never pursue the detectives that are on their trails, play cat-and-mouse with them, torment them, or threaten to rape, murder or kidnap their spouses, partners, friends or lovers. Second, these excessively dramatic plots tend to overshadow all of the elements I mentioned above as things I like about detective fiction. It's hard to make cynical wisecracks when you're in danger of losing everything you hold dear. Lazy American mystery writers (among whom we must now number Mr. Koryta) love these plots, because they provide an easy way to raise the stakes of the investigation, crank up the suspense level, and excuse a healthy dose of satisfying revenge-violence. I hate them, because they strain credulity and suck most of the fun out of the novel.

My main beef with A Welcome Grave is that it's just too unpleasant. While we don't expect fictional detectives to lead lives of careless merriment, neither do we expect them to undergo the trials of Job. In this book, Lincoln Perry's plate is piled high with dirt sandwiches. Two criminals outwit and torment him at every turn. He has to worry about both the physical and psychological well-being of all three of the people he cares about most--his partner, his best friend, and his first great love. Every one of his personal relationships is strained. He is constantly reminded of his greatest mistakes, and is repeatedly thrown together with the woman who broke his heart. Both of his current jobs are threatened. He is pursued by hostile cops from two states who suspect him of multiple crimes that could put him away for life. The Cleveland setting is none too glamorous, either.

When relief from (almost) all of these problems finally comes near the end of the novel, it isn't because of Perry's clever detective work or any innate virtue on his part. Rather, his problems are solved by the timely intervention of two outsiders who don't have any credible motive for helping him out, Deus ex machina style.

I give the book two stars because I admire Mr. Koryta's writing style and character development. This was not, however, an enjoyable read. Unless your taste in detective fiction runs to the unremittingly grim, as is apparently the case with all the five-star reviewers here, you may wish to give this one a pass, or skip to the next installment in the series.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

Lincoln Perry returns in "A Welcome Grave"July 16 2007

By
Kevin Tipple
- Published on Amazon.com

Format: Hardcover

This latest book in the series is another noirish style read with Lincoln Perry dealing with his own past during a current case. Alex Jefferson was tortured and killed in a field near Bedford, south of Cleveland. With no suspects immediately apparent in the field standing over the body or running away from it, Detectives start looking into folks who knew Jefferson and might have held a grudge. People like Lincoln Perry.

Lincoln's grudge as the Detectives see it, would go back a few years ago when Lincoln was engaged to Karen who ended up working in Alex Jefferson's law firm. The boss started noticing her and gradually his efforts at seduction paid off. Lincoln found out they were sleeping together and after consuming a twelve pack of beer, went to Jefferson's country club and beat the living tar out of him. Lincoln left the man alive and was later stopped for drunk driving and eventually charged with assault. Jefferson recovered and married Karen and everyone went on with their lives. Despite keeping mementos from their relationship in a small box, Lincoln doesn't think about what happened much anymore.

That is until now when a few days later Karen calls wanting his help. While sitting in a leather chair in her mansion, Karen tells him that she wants to find Alex's son. The son, Matthew Jefferson, is due to inherit eight million dollars and no one knows where he is. Karen says she wants someone she can trust to find him and tell Matthew what has happened and for that, she is willing to pay Lincoln one percent or eighty thousand dollars. The amount is far in excess what should be paid which does bother Lincoln.

Still eight thousand dollars for a couple of days work would come in very handy right now. Cases haven't been coming in lately. The business is barely afloat and then there is the whole deal with Joe's medical expenses and rehabilitation after he was shot. Guilt is a powerful motivator and Lincoln feels plenty of it so he agrees.

Something that he will soon regret in a case that quickly becomes personal with his very life at stake. Author Michael Kortya once again pulls readers deep into the cynical world of Lincoln Perry in an intense mystery. Part hardboiled and part noir, the read is compelling and intense as it dwells in the shady land in between where Lincoln is at the brink.

While the novel continues character development especially in regards to Lincoln and seems to foreshadow a massive change in his relationship with Joe, it also works heavily with various items from previous novels. As such it is not only hard to discuss the book in great detail, it also strongly behooves those interested in reading the book to start from the beginning with "Tonight I Said Goodbye." In doing so, readers will be introduced to a majority of the characters in Lincoln's world as well as to plot threads that are dealt with in this intense novel by the Edgar nominated author.

Kevin R. Tipple (copyright) 2007

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful

Could NOT put it downJuly 11 2007

By
T. OConnor
- Published on Amazon.com

Format: Hardcover

After recently finishing a Michael Connelly novel, I assumed that this would be somewhat comparable (both being mysteries whose authors were nominated for a Quill Award). While I wasn't wrong, I was surprised that Koryta's writing was far superior to that of Connelly. His characters were more well-developed. The plot had more interesting twists and Koryta found the perfect time and place for his humor. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the genre.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

Boy, can this guy write.Sept. 5 2007

By
L. J. Roberts
- Published on Amazon.com

Format: Hardcover

First Sentence: Sometime after midnight, on a moonless October night turned harsh by a fine, windswept rain, one of the men I liked least in the world was murdered in a field near Bedford, just south of the city.

PI Lincoln Perry's partner and mentor, Joe Pritchard, is recuperating from being shot during their last case. Lincoln is contacted by his ex-fiancée, Karen, and asked to find her murdered husband's son to notify him of his father's death and that he will inherit millions. He finds the son but, before Lincoln can explain why he's there, the son commits suicide in front of him and Lincoln is suspected of murder both of the son and the husband. While he is trying to prove his innocence, the killers are out to kill him.

Boy, can this guy write. I loved his first two books and he only gets better with each one. The book is noir, but human. Lincoln is maturing, both as an investigator and a character. In this book, Lincoln confronts past betrayal while trying to move on. He also has to deal with Joe getting older and uncertain whether he'll continue with the agency. He creates a strong sense of place, and natural dialogue. There is plenty of action that is balanced by introspection and humor, but neither slow down the story and the humor doesn't become glib. This is a story where the sins of the past bear rotten fruit in the present. It builds upon itself; no predictable ending here. Koryta really knows how to build suspense, but also convey emotion. Koryta is still fairly new and is very young in his 20s, but it doesn't show in his writing and I'm looking forward to many more years of great books. Highly recommended.